Name: K.
Start: 2027-03-04
End: 2027-03-07
Location: Her Majesty's Theatre

When

04 Mar - 07 Mar

Where

Her Majesty's Theatre

Access

Venue & access info here

Tickets

Adult

Premium $259 | A Res $229 | B Res $199 | B Res Restricted $159

Festival Friends

Premium $220 | A Res $195 | B Res $169 | B Res Restricted $135

Concession*

A Res $183 | B Res $159 | B Res Restricted $127

Full-time student^

A Res $115 | B Res $100 | B Res Restricted $80

Under 40**

A Res $40 | B Res $40 | C Res $40

Transaction fees apply

B Res Restricted seats will have partial view of surtitle screens.

* Pensioner, Health Care Card holder, MEAA/Actors’ Equity member. NOTE: Commonwealth Senior Health and Seniors Cards are ineligible for concession
** Limited capacity, ID required
^ ID required

Times

Thu 4 Mar 7pm
Fri 5 Mar 7pm
Sat 6 Mar 7pm
Sun 7 Mar 5pm

Duration

3hrs 5mins, incl. interval

Warnings

Contains sexual references, blood and references to violence and torture.

Note

Performed in German, Yiddish and Hebrew with English surtitles.

Tickets on sale 10am (ACST)

A Talmudic Vaudeville inspired by Kafka's The Trial.

Based on Franz Kafka
With music from Bach and Schumann to Yiddish vaudeville
Directed by Barrie Kosky / Musical Director Adam Benzwi

“Someone must have been telling lies about Josef K., he knew he had done nothing wrong but, one morning, he was arrested”... so begins Franz Kafka’s famous text The Trial; a comic yet terrifying tale of Josef K’s blind tumble through totalitarian bureaucracy and an absurd, labyrinthine system of laws that are nearly impossible to navigate.

Barrie Kosky is an Adelaide Festival favourite; his spectacular operas Saul, The Magic Flute and The Golden Cockerel sell-out highlights of recent years alongside his last music theatre extravaganza with the Berliner Ensemble, The Threepenny Opera.

“Kosky is undeniably a genius”

The Guardian

Franz Kafka drew on the mischief of Yiddish theatre and a lifetime of wrestling with his Jewishness when writing The Trial. Kosky explores these questions in parallel with his own heritage to deliver a madcap production of dance, slapstick, song and revelation.

This visually epic, ensemble production with a live band, stars German actor Kathrin Wehlisch as Josef K, performing a masterclass in physicality and comic timing that will be the talk of the Festival.

You have never experienced Kafka or Joseph K’s quest to find his accuser like this before, where laughter and tragedy collide in a distinctly Kosky vision.

“A stunning performance by actress Kathrin Wehlisch... You’ve never seen Kafka like this before”

Berliner Morgenpost

Cast
K. Kathrin Wehlisch
Franz / The Bailiff’s Wife / The Chaplain Joyce Sanhá
Willem / Fräulein Bürstner / The Bailiff / Lawyer Huld Gabriel Schneider
The Guard / The Inquiring Judge / The Defendant Paul Herwig
Frau Grubach / The Beater / Leni Constanze Becker
Uncle Karl Alexander Simon
Merchant Block Tilo Nest
Dora Diamant Alma Sadé

Orchestra
Piano Adam Benzwi
Violin Daniela Braun
Drums Stephan Genze
Trumpet, Flugelhorn Gabriel Rosenbach
Saxophones, Clarinet, Recorder James Scannell
Guitar, Mandolin, Ukulele Ralf Templin
Double Bass, Trumpet, Tuba Otwin Zipp

Artistic Team
Director Barrie Kosky
Musical Director Adam Benwzi
Set and Costume Design Katrin Lea Tag
Choreography Mariana Souza
Lighting Design Ulrich Eh
Video Eric Dunlap
Dramaturgy Sibylle Baschung

K.

K.